


Lead Me Back Home From This Place

by EWBANH



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Background Relationships, Canon-Typical Violence, Family, Follows the timline of TFTBL but if Fiona was a siren, Friendship/Love, Gen, Non-Graphic Violence, Pre-Rhysha, Sibling Love, Time Skips, starts in Fiona's childhood and continues till post Fall of Helios
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 05:00:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29183655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EWBANH/pseuds/EWBANH
Summary: Fiona is fourteen when she wakes up one morning with her entire left side nearly drowned in blue. She sits up in her small double bed, nearly jostling the sleeping child next to her as she stares down at her arm. Her eyes scan the various swirls and marks, lifting her right hand to rub at her forearm in hopes they’d go away. She curses Sasha for the near-evil prank, convinced the younger girl had drawn on her skin, only to stare as nothing changed.A Siren!Fiona AU
Relationships: August/Sasha (Borderlands), Felix & Fiona & Sasha (Borderlands), Fiona & Sasha (Borderlands), Minor or Background Relationship(s), Rhys & Vaughn (Borderlands), Rhys/Sasha (Borderlands)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is another mini project here that starts when Fiona is a child to Tales From The Borderlands and just how things would change if she was a Siren. it's going to be split into three parts so I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Shoutout to my friends on tumblr, specifically Monday-Headache for making me a playlist for this fic, Sirenballad for their enthusiasm, and all my mutuals who put fuel into this fire. 
> 
> Playlist: tinyurl.com/hyya4r7o 
> 
> Title from Wolf by First Aid Kit

Fiona is fourteen when she wakes up one morning with her entire left side nearly drowned in blue. She sits up in her small double bed, nearly jostling the sleeping child next to her as she stares down at her arm. Her eyes scan the various swirls and marks, lifting her right hand to rub at her forearm in hopes they’d go away. She curses Sasha for the near-evil prank, convinced the younger girl had drawn on her skin, only to stare as nothing changed.

It takes a second for Fiona to climb out of bed, navigating the cramped bedroom and entering their equally tiny bathroom. She turns on the faucet, refusing to look into the mirror as she gathers water into her palm before frantically brushing her skin. 

The markings don’t shift. 

Fiona’s gaze falls to her exposed stomach, finding them stretching over the left side there, her entire chest suddenly flooding with a rather suffocating urge to scream.

She bites it down, shaking violently as she meets her own gaze in the mirror. Her fear is reflected back, her heart racing and mind spinning. 

_ Whatever this is… don’t tell her.  _

Fiona sets her jaw, her trembling hands curled into fists as she blinks hard. 

_ Or him. _

She washes her face quickly, the water freezing against her warm hands. Both arms are already covered in goosebumps in her short-sleeve as she turns off the water. Her eyes drop to her feet, her stomach sinking at the sight of pale blue on her left foot. 

Fiona looks to the mirror, her throat bobbing as she swallows down her fear.  


* * *

The cold air of Hollow Point bit Fiona's face as she stumbled through the crowded streets. She left Sasha still asleep, Felix busy working on a trinket at the table as she shot the weak excuse of wanting to grab something. The man didn’t care enough to prod her further, only reminding her of the work they had planned for later on. 

Fiona’s busy navigating her way to one of the more broken down stalls in the market, tucked away in a far corner. It’s too empty to be stolen from without being noticed so Fiona is forced to use what little money was hers, scanning the crowd for her next pick pocketing victim. She looks over the various books sprawled out, the older woman sitting behind the stall looking her over with a scrutinizing gaze. 

“I just need a book,” Fiona speaks, rolling her eyes in feigned nonchalance. “My stupid dad thinks his research will pay off some day.” 

The woman is unamused, perking a brow.

Fiona reaches for the one book she’ll need, pointing at it and cringing at the price. She coughs up the money reluctantly, stuffing the book into her side bag before promptly making her way back into the crowd. She finds her next victim, a younger man who walks with just too much swagger in his steps, the fool holding his wallet in his back pocket. The leather is easily in Fiona’s hand without missing a beat. 

She meets the gaze of a blue eyed boy a few years younger than her across the crowd, his brows furrowed. He’s like her and many other children on Pandora, just barely scraping by. She knows he won’t say anything but she shoots him a dirty look anyway, taking the closest alley out of the crowd.

Fiona is tucked away on a random rooftop, her knees against her chest as she opens the old and falling apart book. Her eyes scan the yellowed pages and fading words, swallowing as she flips to the middle of the book. 

Fiona reads of magical abilities and seas of blue. She feels her throat tighten as her hungry eyes scan the too small chapter, reading the title over and over again. Her hands tighten on the spine of the book before slamming it shut. Her eyes burn but she refuses to cry, settling on feeling angry instead. A string of curses leaves her mouth before she can stop herself, grabbing at her hat with an angry growl, only one word repeating in her mind. 

_ Siren.  
_

* * *

Fiona isn’t anywhere near good enough at keeping secrets just yet. She’s good at lying, excels at conning, but secrets are still something she can’t quite get a grasp on. 

It’s not surprising that Sasha discovers her new markings only hours after they emerge. Felix is easy to dupe, his mind usually focused on their next scheme. He’s busy in his room making calls and inviting a variety of people inside to talk. 

Sasha, on the other hand, followed Fiona everywhere. She knew all her little tricks and what made her tick, she knew her better than anyone ever could. 

Fiona’s scared and terrified of what’s become of her, so she hides her markings. She wears a long sleeve and her usual ripped pants. It’s not much and she only owns a few decent clothes, but it does it’s job. 

Sasha notices her withdrawn nature. So as a curious nine year old does, she sets out on finding out what’s wrong. 

Fiona’s staring in the bathroom mirror again, the cracks doing little to manipulate the sea of blue coming out from her exposed shoulders as she holds her longsleeve in her hands. She’s too wrapped up in her own mind to notice the clicking of the door handle being messed with, her eyes only locking onto the new obstruction in the mirror. 

_ “Woah.” _

Fiona spins around to meet Sasha’s shocked gaze, her green eyes reflecting what she expects to be fear, only for her to look absolutely in  _ awe. _

“Sasha- What are you–”

“You look so cool, Fi!” The young girl exclaims, stepping in and shutting the door with a wide smile. She’s still missing a few teeth from her smile, her hands clasped together, her hair a curly mess. Her hand stretches out to touch her arm, only for Fiona to smack it away shaking her head.

“This isn’t cool, Sasha!” She snaps, terrified. “I-I don’t know what they’re from– they just showed up!” 

The girl blinks, her smile slowly falling as she looks over her sister’s blue marks. “What do you mean? You didn’t do that?!”

“No!” Fiona cries, shaking her head frantically, her braided hair swinging back and forth. 

Sasha seems to gradually understand her sister’s fear, looking over the markings with wide eyes. 

Fiona’s mind seems to crawl to a stop, her eyes locking on the bandaid over Sasha’s cheekbone, her skinny figure just barely hidden underneath the mismatched too-large pajamas she wore. The fear in Fiona’s mind is quickly overwhelmed by the need to protect, her hands grasping Sasha’s small shoulders.

“You don’t tell  _ anyone!” _ She warns, voice low. “Not a single soul- not even Felix!”

“But-”

“No one, Sash!” Fiona snaps, eyes filled with near-fury. “Do you understand me?”

“Why?” Sasha asks, swallowing slowly. “H-He can help you! He might be able to get rid of them or-” 

“This- It puts u-us both at risk,” Fiona speaks, looking to her swirling blue mark on her left hand before focusing back on Sasha’s gaze. “They’ll take me away from you.” 

Sasha swallowed slowly, eyes wide. “B-But, what is it?” 

Fiona falls into another lie almost effortlessly. “It’s just an allergic reaction,” She assures, going the extra mile to nod her head. 

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Fiona whispers, finally dropping her hands from the younger girl’s shoulders. “And it’ll go away on it’s own.” 

Sasha buys in easily, like she always did, her eyes big. “Does that mean we get a day off if you’re sick?”

“No- Don’t tell Felix!” Fiona repeats, almost frustrated. “I can still work, it doesn’t hurt.”

It takes a beat, Sasha looking upset before she nods. “I won’t tell anyone, I promise,” She sticks up her pinky finger, Fiona instantly wrapping her own slim finger around hers, twisting it immediately.

“Pinky promise.”

“Good,” Fiona sighs, the weights on her shoulder already too heavy.  


* * *

It takes a week before Fiona finds out exactly what her ‘allergic reaction’ comes with, her heart racing and shoes hitting the ground at near-lightning speed. Sasha’s hand is in hers, the younger of the two nearly gasping in breath. 

The con had gone wrong, the type of wrong Felix warned them of. One where the businessman on the other end wasn’t afraid to hurt the pair, who had nothing left to lose.

Luckily for the girls, Fiona knew every nook and cranny of Hollow Point. She knows where to hide from people, where even hounding Skags wont look. 

So Fiona sprints forward, going down differing alleyways in hopes to lose the three much larger men behind them. Her other hand is curled tightly around a cotton satchel of cash- enough cash to replace Sasha’s worn down shoes and even get her that radio she had been begging for. 

But it all seems to come to a stop as they come to a dead end, a chain link fence separating them from the otherside of the alleyway. Fiona racks her brain, berating herself for not knowing when or where the fence came from. 

“We have to climb!” Fiona shouts, already letting go of her sister’s hand as she jumps up and onto the fence, holding the strings of the satchel in her mouth. Her fingers dig into the rough chain as she manages to get up to the top, Sasha lagging behind as she drops down, bending her knees to ensure no injury. She holds the bag in her hand, barely managing to turn around before Sasha lets out a sharp cry. 

To Fiona, the fence isn’t high enough to be that much of a danger. But to Sasha, it was easily three times her height. One miscalculation, a slip of the hand even, would bring near devastating consequences. 

Fiona can only stare, the world coming to a stop as Sasha loses her balance at the top, slipping and beginning to fall. Fiona’s nowhere near quick enough to jump forward and catch her but she shoots her left hand out anyway, screaming her name. 

All at once, the world seemed to freeze, or rather, Sasha does. She’s suspended in the air just a few inches above Fiona’s head, her eyes wide and locked on her older sister.

Just below her long sleeve jacket, Fiona can make out a bright shining light. She doesn’t focus for too long as she stretches out her other arm, not questioning the world around her before Sasha resumes falling, this time landing safely in her older sister’s arms. 

The two stare at one another, both eyes wide and fearful. Sasha looks ready to cry and laugh and scream, but she’s pulled away as Fiona’s hand clasps right back around hers, dragging her forward once more.

Fiona’s lungs burn but she’s more focused on the giddy smile growing on her face, a surge of power flowing through her.  


* * *

Fiona sits on the rooftop of their scraggly townhouse, her left hand held out as Sasha sits across from her. The young girl’s holding a baseball, tossing up and down in her palms, the dim street lights below just barely creating enough light for the two to focus.

Fiona looks over the pages of the book she purchased, repeating and memorizing every word. She doesn’t quite understand what it means by  _ willpower _ and  _ energy, _ but she closes her eyes all the same, her left arm sticking out into the air before looking at Sasha. 

“Okay, throw it up,” She orders, the girl grinning. Fiona’s eyes are trained on the ball as she climbs to a stand, her feet digging into the cement ground. She pulls her right hand into a fist, her left hand open with fingers splayed, just like the crude drawing in the book. Her brow is sweaty and furrowed to focus, teeth grinding. 

The ball flies up, coming to a stop just before it’s descent. It stays in the air for a few seconds, just long enough for Sasha to clap her hands in glee, before falling right back into her palms. The tension in Fiona’s body flees as she relaxes her arm, giving Sasha a grin. 

“So it’s only moving things?” Sasha asks, still smiling. 

“I think so,” Fiona answers, lips drawn into a thin line. “I caught you and the ball, both of you were moving.”

“Moving energy, maybe?” Sasha thinks out loud, pursing her lips as she tapped her chin, her curls resting on her shoulders. “Like, you can stop things when they move!”

Fiona was quiet, Sasha’s intelligence once again catching her off guard. She nodded, sighing heavily. 

“I wonder if big things make your wings come back,” Sasha spoke, kicking her feet over the box she sat back on. “They don’t come out when you catch the ball but you had them when you caught me.” 

“All of my energy was used for that,” Fiona murmured, starting to pace, her hand on her hip as she spun around to look to her sister. 

“What if I jumped off the roof?” She offered, grinning madly. “You could catch me!”

_ “No,” _ Fiona immediately replied, shaking her head with a laugh. She returned to her pacing, thinking for a beat before stopping again. “I wonder if…” She paused, Sasha tilting her head with a blink. 

“Roll the ball on the ground,” Fiona instructed, already standing in position. “Just to me, not over the edge.” 

Sasha nodded, sliding off the box and sitting back onto her heels. She rolled the old ball towards Fiona, it’s roll slow, only to suddenly speed up, moving at nearly the blink of an eye. 

“Woah!” Sasha gasped, eyes wide as the ball came to a stop, looking between it and her sister. “You made it go faster!” 

“Yeah,” Fiona breathed out, the ball teetering over the edge. “The energy, like you said.” 

“If it moves you can control it,” Sasha continued, laughing in excitement. “That is so cool! Could you make me run faster!?” 

“I might, but that’s too dangerous to try now,” Fiona countered, shaking her head. Her pacing returned with her rapid thoughts, her arms wrapping around one another against her chest.

The ability to manipulate the energy around moving objects was most definitely something that could come in useful to Fiona. It could help stop cons from going bad, from ever having to worry about being in danger. She could, in time, potentially stop bullets in their place. Of course, as of now, she struggled to keep a ball floating in the air for longer than a few seconds.

But overtime, Fiona wonders just how powerful she could be. How she might reach a new level of power, of strength. One that would protect Sasha from a life of potential crime, from having to be on the run. 

_ Oftentimes hunted, these ‘Sirens’ are few and far between, leaving their discovery to be dangerous if not deadly. _

Fiona tightened her right hand into a fist. Pandora was too dangerous for her, not with what little control she had of herself. She couldn’t keep herself safe and protect Sasha if she were to show the world her abilities. 

“Hey, Fi!” 

Fiona turned to her sister, eyes wide as her hand released the baseball right at her face, spinning before she managed to maneuver it. The ball whizzed by Fiona’s head by a good few inches, landing in the street. 

“Woah!” 

“Sasha, that could’ve hit me!” Fiona snapped, frowning. 

“You moved it, you didn’t stop it!” Sasha exclaimed, her grin back. “You moved it!” 

Fiona blinked, her brows furrowing as she turned to look down at the street, leaning over the ledge to look at the rolling baseball, blinking once more. 

“Oh,” She breathed, Sasha coming to peek over beside her, giggling. 

“It was going to hit you and y-you whizzed it away!” Sasha whispered in awe, looking up to her sister. “You can do a lot more than you think.” 

Fiona managed a small smile, rubbing the young girl’s back. She sighed, looking over to her with a pat of her shoulder. “Come on, let’s go eat,” She murmured. 

“But Felix isn’t home yet,” Sasha spoke, taking her sister’s hand anyway.

“He can make dinner for himself, I know you’re hungry now,” Fiona assured, squeezing her hand. “Come on, maybe we have another can of that soup you like.” 

Sasha nearly jumped for joy beside her sister, already rambling.  


* * *

Felix’s gaze searched Fiona, his eye narrowed and arms crossed. Fiona stood still, shoulders straight and jaw locked.

Sasha had let the secret out only a few months after it had sprouted, Felix catching on almost immediately. He had sent Sasha to her room, taking Fiona to the kitchen to speak. Yet the man had done little of that, his eyes locked on the blue swirls that curled up to her ring finger, her single glove on the countertop. 

“What can you do?” Felix asks, voice low and barely audible in the still air. 

“Manipulate moving energy,” Fiona answers, rehearsed to a T. 

His brows narrow. “How long have you known?” 

“Two weeks.” 

“Fiona.” 

She swallows, right hand curled into a fist. “Six months.” 

Felix is quiet for a moment, nodding his head slowly. He uncrosses his arms, only to cross them again, pushing off the countertop to pace the small space. “This could be useful,” He speaks, mostly to himself. “It could get us out of a lot of sticky situations, and potentially stop things from going wrong.” 

“I know,” Fiona agrees, daring to grow excited at his words. “I’ve even managed to move Sasha, well, I held her still.” 

“Fantastic…” Felix breaths, turning to face her. “Fiona, you might just have set us on a new trajectory in our conning career!” 

Fiona grinned, nodding eagerly. “I’ve been practicing and I know I can grow these abilities,” She goes on, “Sasha’s helped me!”

“Does she have any abilities?” 

“No, just me,” Fiona spoke, noting the slight downward twitch of his mouth. 

“That’s fine. I suppose one of you with powers is enough,” Felix mumbled, shaking his head after a beat. His hands clasped her shoulders, smiling once more. “Fiona, you may have just changed our lives for the better.” 

Fiona grinned, already excited for the future ahead.   


* * *

Fiona is nineteen the first time Sasha gets hurt badly enough that she needs _real_ medical attention. It’s the first time Fiona doesn’t notice a man on the other side of the job is holding a serrated knife. She’s too focused on the money in the briefcase, her mind repeating Felix’s words, to _protect_ _the money._

She spins around just in time to notice the knife digging into her front, just above her hip, a scream leaving her mouth. 

Fiona drops everything, cursing the money and everything around her. She manages to get both her and Sasha out of there before things take a turn for the worse. 

And now Sasha was laying down in her bed, thankfully alive and nowhere near as close to death as Fiona had feared. She’s holding Sasha’s palm with both of hers, her trembling only growing stronger with each passing second. 

“I told you to stick close to m-me,” Fiona breathes out, her jaw set and throat tight. 

“It would’ve been too obvious, Fi,” Sasha replies, looking her over, her other palm over her bandaged side. “Felix said–” 

“I don’t care what Felix said!” Fiona interrupts, shaking her head frantically. “You could’ve died, Sash! This could be a lot worse-” 

“But it’s not,” Sasha cut in, looking almost angry. “I’m fine. That stupid backstreet doctor or whatever made sure of it.” She turned to stare at the ceiling, brows furrowed. “Now I’m useless.” 

“I don’t care-” 

“Felix does.” 

Fiona blinked, her chest heaving with a deep breath, eyes beginning to burn. “That’s not true and you know it.” 

Sasha, expectantly, doesn’t reply. Fiona’s not sure where she got her thinking from, where she decided that she was nowhere near as important to Felix as Fiona was. It angered Fiona to her core, nearly setting her off every time it was brought up. 

“What was the first thing he said after I got hurt?” Sasha murmured. 

“What?” Fiona asks, brows furrowing. “Sasha-”

“It was about the money, wasn’t it?” She asks, voice barely audible in the room. “He asked where the money was, what went wrong, and  _ then _ how I was.” 

Fiona is quiet for too long, giving her younger sister the answers she already knew.

“Told you.” 

“He just doesn’t know how to care-” 

“Stop giving me that shit excuse, Fi!” Sasha seethed, finally looking over. “Why can’t you admit it?! He likes you more, it’s easy as that! There’s nothing to argue with me about.” 

Fiona sets her jaw once again, biting her tongue. She’s had this conversation with the fourteen year old more times than she can count and she knows she’ll keep having it. It left her with a disgusting, icky feeling, one she hated. One that felt all too much like guilt for a crime she didn't commit. 

“You’re in mandated bed rest for two weeks,” Fiona speaks, meeting her green eyes. “I’m making sure of it.” 

Sasha blinks, perking a brow. “And the money?” 

“Doesn't matter.” 

A scoff leaves Sasha, her eyes back to burning holes in the ceiling of the home. “Sure,” She settles on. 

Fiona’s gaze falls to the bandaging on her side, her throat tightening once more as her eyes burn. She looks at her sister’s angry face, the bags between her eyes worse than they’ve been in weeks. Her locs were messily strewn beneath her, her cheeks sunken.

A decision is made in that second, Fiona pulling her hands out of her sister’s palm, climbing to a stand. She looks to her right side before climbing over the strewn out child, sitting between her figure and the wall, nestling in tightly just beside her shoulder. Her hand immediately lands in her sister's hair as she lies down on her side, her other palm holding her own head up as Sasha turns to look. 

Fiona pretends she doesn’t notice the tears in her eyes, gently scratching her scalp. “It’ll make a pretty badass scar,” She murmurs, “You could cover it up with a sick tattoo.” 

Sasha sniffles but nods, letting out a wet laugh. “Can we get matching ones?”

“Scars?” Fiona replies, teasingly.

_ “No,” _ Sasha laughs, reaching up to rub the base of her palm into her eyes. “Tattoos.” 

“God, I already have too many,” Fiona mumbles, smiling a bit. “I got these for free though, I’d love to get a design I actually like.” She’s in short sleeves already, Sasha’s eyes barely shifting to look over the marks.

“They’re cool,” Sasha mumbles, reaching a hand up to gently brush her marked skin. “You got lucky with these. I wish I had powers.”

Fiona hummed a note. “Could you imagine? We’d be unstoppable,” She starts, laughing. “What powers would you want?”

“Flight,” Sasha answers, not missing a beat. “Or maybe- accessing technology. I’d love to be able to change radio stations without missing a beat. Or even creating super neat technology.” 

“That is pretty sick,” Fiona murmurs, smiling, “You’re already a tinkerer.” 

“I’d like to be better,” Sasha points out, nodding her head a bit. “I know I’m good, but imagine if I could hack! I would love to learn.” 

“One day,” Fiona assures, adding another false promise under her belt. “You can maybe even start a music station like you wanted.” 

Sasha grins, her eyes filled with a yearning that had yet to be snuffed out. “Really?”

“Oh, definitely,” Fiona replies, tousling her hair. “Get your sleep now, dream of the best lineup for your afternoon tunes.” 

A laugh broke out of Sasha, looking over her sister’s face. Fiona took the opportunity to lean down, placing a kiss between her eyes, pulling back with a stifled sigh. Sasha gave her a heavy lidded smile, a silent promise that everything would be okay.  


* * *

Fiona’s powers were strong. She had learned to harness the energy, to focus without so much as lifting her arm with lighter objects. Her mind knew no bounds as she skittered through life on the edge. Sasha was by her side with each new discovery, with each step of their conning career. Felix was just as excited, if not more so, his inventions knowing no bounds. 

Fiona saunter’s through the city of Hollow Point, her fingers fixing her hat over her head. She walks with her sister beside her, the seventeen year old walking with just as much gleam. Their legs carried them to a corner of the city, Fiona's pistol on her hip, hidden beneath her jacket as her boots clicked off the rock flooring of the street. 

Their target was none other than a duo from Old Haven, the two men dressed in slightly nicer clothing than often seen in the cave city. Fiona took the lead as she walked over, Sasha already surveying them. 

“Good evening, gentlemen,” Fiona greeted with a tip of her hat, her brown hair braided into a single braid resting over her left shoulder. “I’m guessing you’re here for a trade.” 

The taller of the two looked almost off put, searching the two. “Where’s Felix?” He asked, eyes narrowed.

“Couldn’t make it,” Fiona answered effortlessly, “Are you two backing out? We’ve got many other buyers.” 

“Plenty more,” Sasha added. 

The shorter, more stubbier man shot his friend a dirty look, nearly elbowing him as he dug into his bag. “You have it- can we see it?” 

Fiona nodded, looking to Sasha with a nod. “No touching?” 

“None,” The shorter man stammered out, his eyes wide and frantically searching. “Just- We need to see it to ensure it’s real.” 

Sasha draws out the small drawstring bag from within her own satchel, holding it up for the two to see. She slowly undid the tie, tilting it just enough for the purple glow within to shine. 

“Holy, my god,” The shorter man breathed out, staring with big eyes. “That’s- That’s enough for Commandant Steele! It has to be!” 

“Eridium at it’s finest,” Fiona breathed, taking the satchel from Sasha. “Hasn’t resurfaced in these caves in  _ centuries.” _

The taller man stepped closer, stopping only when Sasha narrowed her gaze. “Why would two little girls have Eridium?” 

“Pack it up, Delilah,” Fiona spoke looking to her sister. “Who was next on the list? The duo from Sanctuary, right?” 

“Wait- Stop! The shorter man cries, grabbing his taller friend’s arm. “She  _ needs _ this, idiot! She can’t charge the Vault Key without it.” 

“Sirens don’t need Eridium,” The other man snaps back, “It just makes them stronger-” 

The rest of his words are lost to Fiona as her eyes widen just a bit, blinking. She wasn’t  _ alone?  _ No longer the only Siren on the planet that she knew of, no longer alone in her struggles. 

“Commandant Steele?” She repeats slowly, Sasha now standing closer.

“I guess you are living in a cave,” The shorter man huffs out. “She’s the leader of The Crimson Lance- You know? Atlas and such?” 

“What’s a Siren?” Sasha asks, eyes searching the two.

“She’s got some crazy tattoos and abilities,” The shorter two explains, almost frantically. “She’s powerful and Eridium will only make her more powerful-” He’s interrupted by a hit to his side from the other man.

“Six hundred,” He growls, holding out the money.

Fiona just barely manages to grab a hold of herself, her throat dry. “We agreed on nine hundred,” She hisses, frowning as she turns to Sasha. “Put it back, we’re wasting time here. Message those Sanctuary-” 

“No!” The shorter man shouts, turning to his friend. He reaches into his bag with little regard to his shout of protest, pulling out another wad of cash. “Nine hundred fifty, for your troubles.” 

Fiona narrows her gaze before nodding, taking the cash as Sasha places the satchel in the shorter man’s hands. They step back with a nod, watching as the shorter of the two hides the fake gems in his own bag. 

“Thank you,” He rushes out, nodding eagerly. 

Fiona only tips her hat. 

“Pleasure’s ours,” Sasha replies, turning with her sister. They’re quick to make it out of their line of sight, immediately taking off once hidden from view. Fiona’s heart is racing even without the physical exertion. Sasha’s the first to stop, only a mile or so from their home but her eyes are wide.

“There’s another one of you,” She whispers out. 

“I know,” Fiona breathes, almost scared. “I-I should find her, right? She could help– maybe she’ll give me a job! I-I can make money legitimately and-” 

“Or she’ll use you,” Sasha cut in, shaking her head. “She’s with the Crimson Lance. Aren’t they the assholes helping Atlas with their stupid domination plan or whatever?” 

“Yeah, but– maybe I’ll get answers,” Fiona goes on, almost desperate. “I can do all this-” She pauses her words, looking to a swaying wire in the air before freezing it in place. “-She’ll have answers. She’ll give me a-a purpose.”

“We can get real jobs, Sash!” Fiona steps closer, holding her sister’s hands in her own. “You can- We’ll have enough money for you to start your radio station.”

Sasha dares to look hopeful. 

“But she might not be good…” 

Fiona sighs but doesn’t give up. “I’ll see what Felix says, okay?” She murmurs, giving her a reassuring smile. “We can figure this out  _ after _ we get our split of this near thousand dollars.” 

Sasha grinned.

The newspaper catches Fiona’s eyes within the next few days as she strolls down the streets of Hollow Point alone, sending her still as she stares at the words in dark ink. 

**_Commandant Steele of the Crimson Lance dead- Atlas to Withdraw!  
_ **

* * *

Fiona finds out she’s not the only Siren soon after the defeat of Atlas. She doesn’t have time to explore, to find out more about herself and who she is. As much as she yearned for an answer, to discover more, Sasha always came first.

Hyperion arrives and soon after, things get worse.

Money was tighter, resources nearly depleted in their city. Nearby forests were cut down, the ground dug up. There were stories of towns losing their minds due to the drilling in the ground, of cities being decimated by destruction and chaos. Felix doesn’t seem to care, focused more on their lives  _ now.  _

So of course, Fiona walks home after her own trade to find the two she left behind at one another’s throats. 

_ Oh boy. _

“You couldn’t have tagged along, Sasha!” Felix snaps, his hand pointed at the young woman. “It was a one person job-” 

“You’ve sent us both before!” Sasha interrupts, chest heaving in the small kitchen, her hand curled into a fist. “You just didn’t want me to mess this up because I  _ always _ mess things up!”

Fiona is more than ready to hang her hat up and collapse into her bed.

“That’s not true and you know it, Sasha,” Felix counters, hands on his hips. “If something is more delicate then of course I’d send Fiona-” 

“Because she’s better!” Sasha points out, nearly shaking. 

_ “No,” _ Felix sighs, eye shut. “Because she can get herself out of the situation easier.” 

Sasha opens her mouth to shout, Fiona taking in the moment to cut into the argument, frowning. She clears her throat, the pair turning to face her. 

“Hi,” She greets, blinking. “What’s up?” 

“Nothing.”

“How long have you been eavesdropping?” 

“A minute,” Fiona answers, hand on her hip. “What’s going on? I could hear you guys in the street.” 

“Nothing,” Felix answers with a frustrated shake of his head. “Did you get the money?”

“Or did you pull a Sasha and fuck it up,” Sasha sneers, glaring daggers at the older man. “You know, what was it? Get attached?” 

Fiona frowns. “Sasha-” 

“Or did you trip and drop the product,” Sasha goes on, arms crossed. “Oh! Did you call them by the wrong name? Or maybe, ooh, you caught feelings for the tall one?” She turned to Felix, nearly snarling. “What else am I forgetting?” 

“My God,” Felix huffs, pushing past the two. “I’ll be in my office.” 

“Yeah! Run!” Sasha shouts after him, “Run to the mistakes I seem to leave for you to clean up!” 

Felix stops in the doorway, his shoulders tense before spinning around, his finger pointed straight at her.

“One day you’ll make a mistake so grave that Fiona and I can’t bail you out of,” He hisses, his voice dripping with a frigid chill. “Maybe you should thank me for delaying the inevitable, rather than hate me.” 

Fiona’s eyes widened, staring at the man in shock before watching him leave. She doesn’t have time to turn to Sasha, watching as she storms to her room, the door slamming shut after a beat. 

The heavy silence left behind is strong enough for Fiona’s shoulders to fall, her eyes screwing shut as she pinched the bridge of her nose. She takes a moment to breathe before pulling out the wad of cash in her pocket, putting it down on the table before grabbing the teapot from the cramped cabinet, filling it up with water. 

Fiona knew Sasha better than anyone else. She knew her anger, her hurt, and her reactions to either. She was more in tune with how she felt, despite how badly she tried to hide her feelings, they always came out in one way or another. 

It was better to leave Sasha to her own devices at first, any attempt to reconcile usually met with a volatile reaction. So, Fiona leaves the water on the stove to boil before making her way to her bedroom. She’s quick to change into a loose pair of pants and a tank top, her hat resting on her dresser. Her eyes look over herself in the mirror, flexing her left hand before sighing heavily. She runs a hand through her much shorter hair, brushing out the few knots, her eyes locking on the red strand. 

The teapot is nearly quivering over the fire on the stove by the time Fiona returns to the kitchen. She stills it with her mind, grabbing a packet of tea from the pantry before searching for the younger woman’s favorite mug. Her eyes light up at the large red ceramic mug, the front etched with the name of her favorite music artist logo. It was a present from Fiona for her fifteenth birthday, one she had made with her own hands. 

Fiona pours the warm water into the mug, letting the packet sit for a few moments before grabbing honey, adding in two spoonfuls, Sasha’s usual request. She takes a preemptive sip, ensuring it was correctly sweetened before making her way to her sister’s bedroom. 

The door is shut but not locked, more than enough invitation for Fiona as she gives a quick knock, pushing the door open soon after. Her eyes lock on the woman laid out in bed, her head beneath a pillow as music blared from underneath. Fiona rolls her eyes, noting the small music player beside her, her headphones connected to it. She’s quiet despite the lack of hearing from her younger sister, shutting the door once more. 

Fiona sits on the edge of the bed, placing the mug of tea on the side table before gently resting her hand over the younger woman’s lower back. She doesn’t speak, despite wanting to, waiting for the music to slowly drain out. Sasha’s arm reaches for the music player, hitting a few buttons quickly.

“What do you want?” She spits out from beneath the pillow.

“New hats,” Fiona answers, not missing a beat. “I don’t have a green one yet but I’d like one.” 

Sasha is quiet, not replying despite the slow rubbing of Fiona’s palm against her shirt. 

“I made you tea,” She speaks softly. “Two spoons of honey, favorite mug and everything. You know you want some.” 

“I want to be alone,” Sasha mutters. 

“No, you don’t,” Fiona counters immediately, getting comfortable against the mattress. One knee was to her chest, another crossed under. “Come on, Sash. Just look at me and I’ll leave you alone.” 

There's no response at first, but slowly Sasha shifts. Her headphones come off first, landing beside the device before her figure comes to a seat beside Fiona. Her hand is immediately wiping at her face, trying and failing to hide the tears clinging to her lashes. 

“Here,” Fiona murmurs, voice much softer as she hands her the warm mug. “It’ll help you feel better.” 

Sasha takes it without another word, taking a small sip as she crosses her legs. She lets the cup sit in her lap, holding it with both hands. 

Fiona’s hand is immediately raised, brushing out her tangled locs with a shake of her head. “Is it good?”

“You know it is,” Sasha mumbles, staring down at her tea. “It’s always good when you make it.” 

A small smile leaves Fiona’s lips as she lowers her hand to Sasha’s knee, squeezing the joint gently. “We can go shooting,” She begins, smiling. “It always helps you feel better. And we can even stop by and grab dessert from somewhere.” 

Sasha is quiet, not looking up. The silence stretches on, the soft repetition of her name finally giving the younger woman the strength to speak. 

“I’m not good at any of this,” Sasha whispers, sending a pang of pain through Fiona’s chest. “I’m not like you. F-Felix can’t get that through his h-head.” 

“We don’t want you to be like me,” Fiona murmurs, her thumb brushing her soft skin. “We love you for you.” 

Sasha sets her jaw at that. “He loves me, but he doesn’t like me,” She breathes, her words wavering. “You’re the favorite.” 

Fiona blinks, her thumb coming to a stop as she racks her brain of what to say, of how to help. She fumbles with her words, Sasha shaking her head.

“It’s okay that you are, I just wish h-he’d admit it,” Sasha explains, swallowing slowly. “I’m sick o-of him pretending.”

“Then he’s an asshole, Sasha,” Fiona starts, “And an idiot. Because you are perfect the way you are. There’s nothing about you I would change.” 

“That doesn’t m-mean I’m good at this,” Sasha whispers, sniffling. “I’m bad at conning. I get in the way.”

Fiona frowns, her hand moving up to hold her shoulder, Sasha looking to her with teary eyes. “First off, you’re  _ great _ at what we do, we wouldn’t be as okay as we are right now if you weren't,” She began passionately, shaking her head, “And I would give up  _ everything _ we have if it meant you’d always be by my side, Sasha.” 

“We’re family, Sash, it’s just us,” Fiona breathes, giving in to hug the younger woman to her chest, squeezing her tightly as her chin comes to a rest in her hair. “I’d give up conning and scheming and  _ everything. _ I would do it now if we could, if w-we had other things lined up.” 

Fiona clears her throat, squeezing her sister tighter. “Once Hyperion goes away, when the world is safe again,” She murmurs, her cheek in her sister’s hair. “Maybe… Maybe we can try our luck on another planet. Somewhere safer, with more opportunities.” 

“What ab-about Felix?” Sasha asks, voice small. 

“He’ll be fine on his own, he’s been doing this for years,” Fiona assures, nodding her head a bit. “And we can keep in touch. He’ll understand, he knows we don’t want to do this forever.” 

Sasha sniffles again and Fiona takes the opportunity to place a kiss in her sister’s hair, leaning back to hold her at arm's length, looking her over. “I can become a kick ass Vault Hunter or something and you can start your radio station,” She speaks, smiling widely. “We can find out more about my powers together.” 

“That’d be nice,” Sasha breathes, letting one hand go off the mug to rub her face. “I-I can help you learn new tricks again. Like the old days.” 

Fiona chuckled, nodding her head. “I know, it’ll be great.” She squeezes her shoulders, lifting a hand to brush one of her loc behind her ear. 

“When do you think Hyperion will l-leave?” Sasha whispers, looking back down at her warm drink. 

“The Crimson Raiders will deal with them,” Fiona assures, forcing her voice to be strong. “There’s no way they win. Pandora’s stronger.” 

Sasha looks over with big eyes. “You saw what they did to th-those people in those towns… they went crazy.” 

“Pandoran’s are strong,” Fiona replies, shaking her head. “And if they come here, we can get out. Nothing is tying us here to Hollow Point.” 

Fiona makes sure Sasha’s meeting her gaze when she nods, a tight smile on her lips as she gestures for her to drink. “Twenty two years old and you still need two whopping scoops of honey in your tea.”

Sasha snorted, taking a drink before speaking. “You drink nasty shit all the time, seriously,” She replies, shaking her head. “It’s disgusting.” 

“You just can’t appreciate the taste of pure tea,” Fiona teases, smiling. 

Silence falls over the two, Sasha’s sniffles slowly evening out as she sighs. She looks to her messy desk, the various trinkets splayed across, barely any room for her lamp. 

“Do you think Felix is right?” Sasha whispers, not looking over. “That one day I’ll make a really bad mistake.” 

Fiona is quiet for just a beat, gathering her words. “Maybe,” She settles on, “Maybe he’s right, maybe he’s wrong.” 

“But there will never,  _ ever, _ be a time where I won’t be there to fix things,” She assures, holding her arm. “To help. You’re always going to have me.” 

“What if it’s really bad?” Sasha nearly whimpers.

“Then you better have really,  _ really, _ good stamina,” Fiona jokes, smiling. “Because we’re going to need to haul ass out of there.” 

Sasha thankfully laughs at that, shaking her head before taking a sip of her tea. Fiona’s eyes search her, noting her more relaxed figure. She’s not satisfied yet, her hand squeezing the woman’s forearm to grab her attention. 

“Felix will come by to apologize like he always does,” She states, brows pinched. “You know he will. He’ll do that stupid thing where he pretends to ask about what you’re working on, despite already knowing, and then he’ll apologize.” 

Sasha nods slowly, looking back down at her drink. “I know.” 

“Good,” Fiona murmurs, clearing her throat after a beat. “Hurry up and finish your tea, I want to go stop bullets with my mind.” 

A grin grew over Sasha’s lips as she bumped her shoulder against Fiona’s.  


* * *

Fiona stares at Felix, her hands curled into fists by her sides as her mouth hands open. She’s in shock and disbelief, she wants to shout- to scream at him the dangers of the job. 

Yet, a part of her is giddy with excitement.

_ “Hyperion?” _ She repeats, voice slow. “Like- Like Handsome Jack _ ,  _ Hyperion?”

“You know who I’m talking about, Fiona,” The man replies, frustrated. “It’s a simple job. All you need to do is pass off the dupe to the corporate bastard, that’s all it takes.”

Fiona blinks. “We have  _ never _ done something this crazy before, Felix! This is dangerous!” She looks to the door, nails digging into her palm. “Just because their asshole leader died doesn’t mean they’re  _ weak!” _

“Sasha already said yes,” Felix spoke, arms crossing. “She’s with our first client already. I’m sure you've seen him around.” 

“I don’t care– Felix, Hyperion killed  _ thousands,” _ Fiona went on, shaking her head slowly. “This- This isn’t some stupid gang or idiots, these people are- they’re  _ monsters. _ They can and will come after us!” 

“Which is why I’m making sure this won’t go south,” Felix counters, frowning. “Fiona, you know I wouldn’t put you in danger.” 

Fiona sets her jaw, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. “Felix-”

“It’s worth ten million dollars, Fiona.” 

The words are more than enough to send Fiona still, her eyes wide. She meets Felix’s easily eccentric gaze, mouth hanging open once again. 

“You’ll never need to work another day, neither will Sasha,” Felix nearly whispered, grinning. “You can retire at twenty-nine, explore the galaxy like you’ve always wanted.” 

“You’ll both be  _ safe.” _

Fiona curls her hand into a fist. She thinks about the scars on her own body, even more so the scars on Sasha’s. Her mind wanders to the posters in her younger sister’s room, the trinkets she dabbles with that could change the world. She thinks about the stories she used to read to her, about Vault Hunters and explorers, about distant planets and tropical paradises. Sasha deserved better than what Pandora had to offer, what it could ever give her. 

Fiona dares to smile. 

“What’s the plan?”  


* * *

Fiona can’t sleep, so she doesn’t. Despite very much wanting to, very much craving a moment of silence, Fiona stares at her ceiling. She messes with the spinning blades of her fan, speeding them up, slowing them down, and even stopping them for minutes at a time. It was a habit birthed from boredom, one that had broken other ceiling fans in the past. 

Tomorrow would be the biggest heist of her life. Potentially the most dangerous, if things went wrong. 

Yet Fiona dared to be  _ excited. _

The con would take them out of Hollow Point, deep into the Pandoran desert. Sasha had already played her part, already acting and making the connections needed.

Fiona doesn’t think too hard about Felix’s warning. 

_ You cannot get attached, Sasha. Not this time. _

She also tries not to think about the look in Sasha’s eyes every time she meets their ‘partner’s’ gaze. 

The atmosphere in Fiona’s room is quickly disturbed by a knock at the door, her brows furrowing as the fan returns to it’s slow spinning. 

“Come in.”

Sasha’s head pokes in first, her lips pulled into a giddy grin as she immediately tip toes in, shutting the door with a small dance. 

“We’re going to be  _ millionaires _ tomorrow!” She whispers, earning a laugh from Fiona as she’s waved in. 

“Yeah, I knew you wouldn’t be able to sleep either,” Fiona started, shaking her head. “Whats up?”

“I’m nervous,” Sasha answered, coming to a seat on the end of the bed, legs crossing. “But also really excited, I don’t even know if I’m going to sleep.”

“We’ve done a million and one cons before, Sasha,” Fiona replied, smiling. 

“Then why can’t you sleep?” Sasha countered. 

Fiona didn’t reply for a moment, brows raised, only to deflate with another laugh. “I might also be a  _ tiny _ bit excited,” She spoke, “Never nervous.” 

“Oh no, of course,” Sasha assured, grinning from ear to ear. “You know, August was telling me about Vaults the other day.” 

“What was he saying?” Fiona replied, brow raised. “I thought he was a bartender.” 

“Just stuff about the other Vault Hunters, the ones up in Sanctuary,” She explained. “Apparently real Vaults have priceless stuff, things you can’t even think of. He’s apparently even seen the Siren who killed Handsome Jack.” 

“Did he give her a high-five?” Fiona asked, snorting. 

Sasha hummed a note. “I would have,” She answered, only to shake her head. “He was also talking about Elpis, he’s never been, but apparently they have these things called  _ Skrakks, _ which are-” 

“Seems like you and August talk a lot,” Fiona interrupted, her gaze narrowing a bit. 

Sasha looked over her sister, her arms instinctively tightening around herself as she shrugged. “I mean, we have to talk,” She replied, “It’d be weird if we didn’t, you know?”

“You don’t have to worry about him or me caring about him, or anything stupid like that,” Sasha assured, shaking her head. “He likes  _ Sasha _ . Not me.”

Fiona was slow to nod, leaning back against her headboard. “If you say so,” She murmured, “I trust you.” 

“You worry too much,” Sasha sighed, shaking her head. “Trust me, I’m not going to blow ten million dollars because I caught feelings for some guy from Hollow Point. Seriously. That's the bottom of the barrel.”

“We’re from Hollow Point too, Sash,” Fiona pointed out, smirking. 

“Yeah, but we’re cool,” Sasha replied, winking. 

Fiona chuckled, shaking her head before looking around the room, sighing after a beat. “First thing I’m buying is tickets out of here,” She murmured, looking back at her sister.

“Hollow Point or Pandora?” Sasha asked, brows raised.

“Still deciding,” Fiona answered, “What about you, what’re you getting?” 

“A new radio to start,” Sasha replied, nodding her head. “Probably a rare gun, the kinds you can't find on the street. Maybe an Atlas weapon. Something sick.”

“Sick indeed,” Fiona agreed with a small laugh. “I’m thinking after we get out money, we go up to Sanctuary. I talk to the Sirens up there, get some answers, then we haul ass out of here.”

Sasha smiled. “Which planet?”

“I’ll pull out a map of the galaxy, spin you around three times- with your eyes shut of course, then you point,” Fiona explained, grinning from ear to ear. “That way we’ll both be in for a surprise.” 

A giddied laugh left Sasha’s figure as she nodded, her hands clasping in glee. “Oh god, what if we get Pandora?”

“Then I’m spinning you again,” Fiona snorted.

Sasha laughed again, her laughter echoing off the walls before she relaxed, sighing heavily. She yawned after a beat, Fiona joining in as she stretched her arms out and over her head. 

“Tomorrow sparks a new life for us, Sasha,” Fiona spoke, sighing. “Go to bed. I’m taking your share if you sleep in.” 

“Pssht, as if,” Sasha replied, sticking her tongue out for good measure. She couldn’t stop another yawn from breaking past her lips as she stood up, arms stretching over her shoulders with a groan. “Alright, Fi, I’ll catch you in the morning.”

“Bright and early,” Fiona responded, smiling softly. “We’ve got money to make.” 

Fiona watched her sister leave the room, her heart racing as sleep evaded her once again. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen to the playlist by my friend Monday-Headache on tumblr here: tinyurl.com/hyya4r7o

Fiona is livid. She’s livid at the two Hyperion stooges who ruined _everything._ She’s livid at the taller of the two for having a _stupid_ ECHO-Eye, for the smart-ass mouth on the shorter one. 

She can still hear the Vault Key falling to the floor and shattering. She can still feel her pistol in hand, the wide-eyed look from Felix–

More than anything, Fiona is hurt, she feels like she’s suffocating, like the world is pushing down on her. 

Felix was dead and the money was gone. The two idiots who ruined everything are lost in the desert and Fiona couldn’t give much of a shit. Her nails are digging into the wheel, her markings lighting up as she manages to speed the caravan forward. Sasha’s silent beside her, hand holding onto the railing with a frown on her lips. 

She hates Felix, Fiona realizes. She hates how he betrayed her at the end of everything, how he _dared_ to do so. Her mind wanders to the decades they spent together, to how he was there for Fiona when no one else was–

“Fi, you’re going to send me flying!” Sasha cries out, ripping into her thought process. 

Fiona immediately relaxes her tensed left arm, not looking over as her markings dull once again. The caravan is back to it’s normal speed, as fast as it could possibly go in its current state and Fiona is silent once more. 

“Do you think those two are okay?” Sasha asks after a beat. 

“I don’t care,” Fiona snaps, nails digging into the wheel once again. “They can die out there, it’s the least they deserve.”

“We need Rhys for the Gortys piece,” Sasha speaks, her voice barely audible over the rushing wind.

“Then he better survive!” Fiona hisses, not looking over. “Right now, all I care about is fixing this stupid vehicle.”

Sasha is quiet but Fiona can feel the tension flowing off her. 

“This Vault will have more than ten million dollars,” Sasha nearly promises, looking over her sister. “It’ll be worth it, I know it will.”

Fiona sets her jaw, eyes locked on the never-ending dust ahead. “It better be.”

* * *

The various sentry drones and security bots staring down at Fiona are nearly enough to genuinely scare her. They probably would if she weren’t already thinking ahead, if her left arm wasn’t already tense, her eyes scanning the sea of guns. Her eyes dare to flicker to Sasha, to her _scared little_ sister with a gun to her throat. 

Fiona is prepared to kill. 

“Whatever you’re going to do, Fiona, do it now!” Rhys cries, his voice high pitched and panicked as it usually was. 

Fiona doesn’t take the time to think too hard about just how stupid the man was to trust her so easily before she’s throwing the stun grenade. Her hands wrapped around the back of Rhys’ stupid suit, yanking him down and onto the ladder.

“Th-That worked?” Rhys squeaked out, blinking wildly as they climbed down the ladder, the man looking much paler than usual.

“What did you think would happen?” Fiona asked, raising a brow. “You really thought I wouldn’t have a plan?” 

“I didn’t say that,” Rhys replied, “I’m just surprised that worked is all.” 

“Well we still have a crap ton of guns waiting for us on the other side,” Fiona hissed, coming to a stand. “You can’t use your fancy cybernetics to take them down-” 

“Nope,” Rhys nearly snapped, meeting her gaze with a quick shake of his head. “Not possible.”

“God, fine, okay,” Fiona growls, leading the way, her arm holding onto the Gortys piece with as much strength as she dared. 

She leads the way, eyes wide and locked as they navigate the base. She’s thankful Rhys isn’t paying too much attention, his mind seemingly occupied with something else as he fails to notice the drones that are frozen still. Fiona is still taking as many precautions as possible. She makes sure to use her hat as a fancy display of her superior aim, keeping an eye on the drones she had a hold of with each step. 

“Rhys! Do you have _any_ upper arm strength?!” Fiona cries, the man hanging over the ledge as he struggles to pull her up. 

“Have you not _seen me!?”_ The man whines.

“You have a metal arm!” Fiona shouts, prepared to berate the man, only for Loader Bot to appear, lifting them both up and onto the lobby platform. She’s let down first, prepared to turn and thank the robot, only to watch with wide eyes as the robot takes to all but pummeling Rhys. 

_“Ow! Loader–”_

The lobby is in disarray, a near-warzone unfolding. August’s men have their guns blazing and the Atlas security bots are just as eager to fight back. Vasquez is in the mix playing with a remote like device that Fiona easily points out to be connected with the antenna on Loader Bot’s head. 

Fiona is quick to hurl her hand back, sending it over to Vasquez with a slight hint of manipulation, making sure the device connects with his forehead. She smiles at the painful smack, wasting no time to spin around and face the onslaught of destruction. She’s quick to stop a bot in mid air, her left hand clenched before forcing it to the ground, thankful no one notices amongst the chaos. Her eyes find a secure path, walking forward as Vaughn is immediately by her side, unsure of how he got out of the bastard’s hold. 

“Woah, that was super coo-”

It’s a split second realization, one that Fiona’s trained for years on how to react. She knows the bot ahead and what it’s about to do, and it’s all but reflex at that point.

The dart is flying straight towards her and she has more than enough time to jump out of the way but Vaughn doesn’t. He’s too scattered and unfocused, his mind still adjusting to the hostility that is Pandora.

So Fiona reacts, left palm clenching as the dart aimed straight for him comes to a stop just in front of his chest. He’s startled to a stop, gasping loud. He looks between the dart and Fiona, the dart turning away and landing in the wall. 

Vaughn stares, Fiona’s heart skipping a beat. She’s prepared to curse the man, to threaten him, but a nearby bandit is quicker. 

She watches as the bandit tackles the much shorter man to the ground, a knife in hand and aimed straight for his throat.

 _“Vaughn!”_ Rhys practically screams, running over. 

Fiona finally gathers herself as she lands a solid kick on the bandit’s back, pushing him off Vaughn before finishing him off with one of the many pistols lying around. Vaughn’s still staring at her as Rhys helps him up, frantically looking him over. 

She steps away, terrified he’ll reveal her secrets, only for him to nod his head quickly. 

“Fiona’s got o-one hell of a kick,” He stammers out, finally meeting Rhys’ gaze.

“We have to get to cover!” Fiona cries, sprinting to the right. The two are on her heels, all ducking behind the large ledge of the Atlas statue, eyes searching for her younger sister, only for her to suddenly appear behind Rhys.

“Hey! You made it!” The man greets, almost too happy for Fiona’s taste. She saves that pivot of information for later, peering over the ledge with a frown, her hands shaking. 

“It’s not over yet!”

* * *

Fiona stares down at the road ahead, the large snowflakes whizzing by the Caravan as she drives forward. Her nails are once again digging into the innocent wheel, eyes locked ahead as her heart nearly beats out of her chest.

She’s thankful that she’s alone, at the very least.

Sasha had passed out on the couch shortly after the hell that was the Atlas facility, curled up tightly. Athena had refused to sit down, deciding to stand at the door and sleep while _standing,_ something Fiona refused to admit was… kind of cool. Rhys was doing Rhys things, his weird mannerisms following him up to the rooftop of the caravan, leaving only Vaughn behind.

Fiona had done everything in her power to avoid the man. As far as she was aware, he had yet to say a word to anyone, even Rhys. She had caught him looking over at her more than once, looking down at her single glove on her left hand before looking away. She had shot him a plethora of dirty looks, nearly cursing at him to stop looking. 

That still didn’t stop him from approaching her as she drove. 

“Hey.” 

Fiona barely stops herself from slamming the brakes, her grip on the wheel tightening. “Howdy,” She settles on, jaw clenched. 

“Thank you, for back there,” Vaughn says, earning a quick glance from Fiona. He’s standing on the last step, his hands clasping onto the railing to keep himself steady. His eyes were focused ahead, not looking over as he searched the surrounding Pandora environment. 

“No need,” Fiona replies, letting him take the lead, her curiosity getting the best of her.

Silence fell over the two, Fiona’ brow perking as the shorter man turned to look behind before Fiona finally felt his gaze lock on her. 

“I won’t tell anybody,” He starts, the words bringing both relief and panic into Fiona’s figure. “Not even Rhys, which I know might surprise you, but it’s not my thing to tell.” 

Fiona gives him a stiff nod. 

“Can you move things with your mind?” He asks, a tinge of excitement underlying his words. 

A part of Fiona wants to hide, to shoo the man away and tell him it wasn’t his business, that he didn’t need to know. Another, much larger part, wants to indulge his curiosity, to feel _special,_ to show someone just how powerful she could be.

Fiona dares to be a little kid again. 

“Moving things, yes,” She whispers, refusing to look over.

“Oh- So like, Kinetic Manipulation?” Vaughn asks, brows furrowed. 

Fiona looks over. “That’s what it’s called?” She speaks, focusing back on the word. “Kinetic...?”

“Kinetic energy is the energy you get from moving things,” Vaughn answers, leaning against the railing with a wide smile. “So, if you take a ball and-” 

“Throw it,” Fiona finishes, nodding. “I practiced that one a lot.” She swallows, sending him a quick glance. “Why didn’t you rat me out? Doesn’t Hyperion like having this type of power under its thumb?” 

Vaughn’s quiet for a beat, shaking his head. “Because we’re friends, or at least I consider us friends,” He begins, voice softening a bit. “And friends don’t do shit like that.” 

Fiona raises a brow, ignoring the warmth in her chest. “Okay, what about Hyperion?”

“Don’t know if they’re much big fans of Rhys or I anymore,” He answers without missing a beat. “Pretty sure we get back up there and they’ll kill us.” He shrugs his shoulders. “Besides, I think Pandora’s growing on me.” 

“Really?” Fiona breathes out, nearly scoffing. _“Pandora_ is growing on you?” 

Vaughn chuckled softly. “Yeah, I kind of like not being confined to a desk all day,” He replies, a smile tinging his words. “It’s fun, minus the almost getting stabbed in the throat by a bandit part.” 

“Yeah, I think we could all do without that,” Fiona agrees, nodding her head a bit. 

Silence falls between the two and Fiona doesn’t feel so icky anymore. She feels more in control of her breathing, almost _relaxed_. It’s a weird feeling, especially with the Hyperion, or rather Ex-Hyperion, man standing beside her. 

“You’re a Siren, right?” He asks suddenly, “I just want to make sure we’re on the same page.” 

Fiona nods, not looking over. “Since I was fourteen.” 

“Wow,” Vaughn breathes out, “That’s pretty sick.” 

A snort breaks past her defenses, a frown growing over her features. “Yeah, maybe if you didn’t survive off the streets conning people,” She replies, nearly hissing. 

Vaughn is quiet and Fiona nearly feels bad. “Yeah, you’re right, I’m sorry,” He murmurs, “That was insensitive.” 

Fiona lets a beat pass before speaking again. “How do you know about Sirens?” She asks.

“I mean, a Siren killed Handsome Jack,” He answers almost nonchalantly. “Lilith, or something like that. And Jack had an obsession with them for some reason, it was just all around a Handsome Jack thing. But once he died we all kinda learned more about them.” 

Fiona nodded slowly, her hands tensing once more. “Makes sense.” Her mind scrambles, trying not to appear as desperate for more information than she was, her fingers drumming the wheel. “How many Sirens are there?”

“Six, maybe seven?” Vaughn answers, brows furrowing as he scratches his wrist. “Not too sure, but I know two are on Pandora right now. Well, three including you.” 

“That’s… good to hear,” Fiona breathes. She forces away the urge to ask more questions, reminding herself of just what Vaughn was there for. 

Vaughn blinks before nodding, Fiona giving him a quick glance to ensure he understood. “Your secret is safe with me, I promise.” 

It’s Fiona’s turn to nod, huffing a bit as she got comfortable against the seat. “Go back to sleep, Vaughn, we’ll be there soon,” She starts, only to frown. “Or go check on Rhys. He’s on the roof.” 

“Eh, he’s been needing more space lately,” Vaughn answers, not that Fiona particularly cares. “I don’t think he’s adjusting to Pandora well. Poor guy.” 

“Well he better learn,” Fiona replies, annoyed. “We’re going to need him for everything that comes after this.” 

“Yeah, I know.” 

Fiona waits for the man to shift, looking over just in time to see him shoot her two finger guns, a grin on his lips. “See you later, _Not-Siren_ Fiona.” 

“Oh my God.”

Fiona focuses back on the road as the man disappears to the back of the caravan with a laugh, her chest feeling just a bit lighter. 

_So this is what it’s like to have friends._

* * *

Fiona refuses to show just how nervous she is about their entire _stupid_ plan. She refuses to think about Athena’s still body getting dragged away, about the knife in Sasha’s arm– She doesn’t even want to get into what Helios has in store for them. 

She looks to Scooter, the man giving her another maniacal grin with an even bigger thumbs up and Fiona gives him a tight smile, shaking her head before making her way to the bathroom. She’s thankful at least that it has stalls, more than happy to push the door open. 

_“–You can take this little plan and shove it up your ass!”_

Fiona blinks, staring at Rhys nearly hunched over figure clinging to one of the sinks. 

“Well shit, you have any better options?” Fiona replies from the doorway, nearly laughing at the way he jumps back, eyes wide. The humor leaves her almost immediately at the fear in his eyes, only for it to be replaced by the sheer douchebaggy-ness that encompassed the man. 

“I have a weak stomach,” Rhys speaks, shrugging. “You saw me in the caravan, always having to go up to the roof for air.” 

A snort finds its way past Fiona as she steps into the bathroom staring into the mirror at the reflection that looked nothing like her. 

“Oh this is just torture.”

It’s Rhys’ turn to laugh, Fiona shaking her head as she fixes her brand new outfit over her figure, feeling unbelievably out of place. 

“Hey, it could be worse,” Rhys spoke, grinning a bit. “We could be in a barely put together rocket ship that’s probably built by someone who may or may not be qualified!” 

Fiona shut her eyes, sighing heavily. “Have I told you I hate you?”

“Plenty of times.” 

Fiona opens her eyes, only to roll them, looking over the man. She notices he’s not staring at his reflection in the mirror, instead his gaze is locked just beside the glass, brows furrowed and apparently deep in thought. 

“Don’t hurt yourself thinking too hard,” Fiona speaks, prying for more information the best way she knew how. “Home sweet home is just around the corner.” 

Rhys takes a second to scoff, shaking his head. “Yeah, hopefully everything goes to plan and I _don’t_ get dismembered.”

“Hey, if it helps you feel better, we’ve got those two nice gentlemen tagging along,” She speaks, nearly caught off guard by the man’s sudden honesty. “Worse case scenario we have to abandon ship, Vallory might throw a fit but she needs us. She’ll just send us all up there again.” 

“Yeah.” 

Fiona reaches up to fix the collar of her suit, bringing it closer to hide the markings that threatened to peak out. She tries not to look back over at Rhys, to not take in the way he seems to be sweating _a lot_ more than someone excited to return to their home.

She takes the potential bait.

“You don’t seem excited,” She starts, locking her gaze back on her own reflection as she turns the freezing water on, taking off her glove. “I thought you would be.” 

“Well, what can I say?” Rhys replies, clearing his throat. “Pandora’s turned me into a changed man.” 

Fiona scoffs at that, washing her hands to hopefully hide the shaking, turning off the water after a long moment. “Has it now?”

“I know, who would’ve thought,” Rhys jokes, smirking. “I don’t know if I’d stay down there, uh, but it might be better than what Helios has in store for me!”

A weird feeling in Fiona’s chest blossoms. “I think you’d like Sanctuary,” She states, deciding to continue forward with the conversation despite the ingrained feeling to _not_ be so nice to the man. “They’ve got a couple nice things up there, it is a floating city, though.” 

Rhys’ face is blank, eye twitching before he smiles. “You know, I’ll keep that in mind,” He replies. 

Fiona doesn’t say anything back, turning to look at her reflection one last time. She’s nearly gathered the courage to go up to that moonbase and get everything over and done with right then and there, but Rhys shifts just enough to call for her attention, clearing his throat.

“Hey, Fiona?”

She takes a second to look back over, nearly missing the way his eyes are wide, looking almost _scared-_ as if he was about to confess his darkest secret to her in the middle of the broken down bathroom. He’s back to the same Rhys in a blink of an eye, giving her a small smile. She’s almost brave enough to call him out on it.

“You need some privacy?” She settles on, arms crossing 

Rhys actually lets out a laugh, shaking his head. “If everything goes to plan up there,” He starts, his voice not quite right, his words nearly scrambling after one another. “I’d love a r-real tour of Hollow Point.” 

Fiona perks a brow at that, hoping to hide the way his words make her feel almost… _bad._ She can just barely make out the genuine tone in his voice, another emotion hidden beneath that Fiona can’t make out in the seconds she's scrambling to find a response. Her mind naturally drifts to how he so easily referred to her as a _friend_ only days ago. 

“I might know just the person for that,” She replies, beginning to walk out with a wave of her fingers. “Come on, we’ve got a moon base to infiltrate.”

Fiona doesn’t look back, adjusting her collar once more. 

* * *

Fiona’s shoes echo off the floor of Helios as she all but sprints through the too-tight halls, cursing every single thing in her way. She curses the employees who are screaming and running beside her, even the stupid clean floors beneath her shoes. She doesn’t seem to care, not anymore as her left hand is up, fingers splayed out and glowing. 

She’s furious. She’s hurt. She’s ready to leave everything behind and never spend another day thinking about the hell that is Hyperion.

The base shifts forward and Fiona nearly trips. Her mind’s more focused on swerving the bullets aimed at her from the various sentries. She struggles to drone out the sound of the bastard on each screen, her right hand curled around her pistol. 

_“You can’t run from me, Rhys!”_

She aims a bullet straight at the screen without another care. 

Rhys had found out, just before things went to hell. Just before he lied and betrayed her. He had seen her manipulate the spinning traps of Handsome Jack’s office, Fiona berating herself immediately, only for his reaction to be one of pure glee. 

He had even gone as far as calling her powers _cool._

The moment is tainted nearly seconds later, when Rhys thinks she’s just out of earshot. At the time, she played it off to his ‘quirks’, only shaking her head as she focused on Gortys. 

Now, it made her all the more sicker.

 _“No, you can’t touch her or Sasha or_ _anyone!”_

Rhys had more than enough opportunities to confess- to tell the truth. But he didn’t. He lied. Again and again. 

Fiona could get over it, as much as she hates the sick twisting in her stomach, she would. She’d wake up tomorrow and she’d curse his very existence, only to be fine soon enough. 

Sasha was a whole other story. 

Fiona doesn’t have time to focus too hard on just how hurt she was, focusing instead on finding the escape pods. She’s only got one objective now, Vault be damned, and that’s to find and protect Sasha. 

Fiona ducks and weaves through various groups of people, the taste of metal filling her mouth as she sprints towards where she knows there to be the escape pods. She ignores the lack of many left, her eyes locking on one of that looks intact. 

Fiona doesn’t mind shoving someone out of her way, freezing another still behind her before she jumps in. She’s buckled in without another care, already taking off and back towards Pandora.

The derringer pistol in her hand is locked and loaded, Fiona setting her jaw as she nearly trembles. She can’t help the rage that overcomes her, staring down at the weapon with the promise of revenge. 

Various pods around Fiona explode. She doesn’t find it in her to care. She doesn’t find herself caring about much at all. Sasha has and always will be her sole priority, the only thing that matters to her. She would go to the ends of the galaxy to protect her. 

Fiona hurtles back down to Pandora. 

She smothers the lone thought about who she’s leaving behind with a click of her derringer. 

* * *

Chaos unfolds on Pandora and Fiona is nearly frozen still. She’s almost brave enough to admit she’s scared as she stares at the beacon of light. 

She needs to find Sasha.

“Sasha, Sasha answer me!” She all but shouts into her Echo, hand trembling as the energy around her feels _wrong._ Or right- Fiona is still deciding. 

Her left side throbs.

 _“Fiona?! Oh thank God,”_ Sasha crackles over the flickering connection. _“Vallory used the beacon to summon the Vault and Gortys- she can't do this- the monster it’s– she can’t handle it!”_

Fiona’s already moving, her body aching and tired, but she’s moving. “Monster?!” She repeats in disbelief, ash and fire from the falling space station and Vault whipping her hair around. “Sasha-”

_“Wait- Hey! Hey!”_

Fiona feels her body tense. _“Sasha!”_ She screams into her Echo. 

She knows it’s useless, the silence greeting her sending her heart racing. The ground rumbles and Fiona’s tumbling down, just barely managing to catch herself. She pulls herself off the dried ground just quick enough to avoid being run over, cursing the driver silently before looking to the right. She can just barely make out Gortys’ usually small legs, her own legs carrying her over as she all but sprints to her robotic friend. 

A rocket fires from nearby and it’s too far for Fiona to stop with her abilities, but she tries anyway.

_“Vallory!”_

Fiona sees the woman reload another shot and she’s already sprinting over. She steps over the various strewn bodies about,her eyes locking on the caravan and nearly startling her to a stop. Her mind is temporarily occupied, her heart racing, as she closes the distance. It takes a bit of strength to get the door open, her eyes wide as she stares down at the bleeding man on the ground. 

“August?” 

The man groans and Fiona curses herself silently as she ducks down beside him, hand hovering over his shoulder. “Hey- Are you okay?” Another mental curse at such a stupid question. “Stay- Just stay with me, I’ll be back.” 

Fiona prays that the nod he gives her is not an involuntary twitch of pain as his eyes shut. She promises to return, turning back to Vallory. Her left hand is curled into a fist, fully prepared to stop Vallory in her tracks, only to be pulled to a stop, a hand clasping around her ankle. She snarls, looking down at Finch.

The man dares to laugh, looking up at her. Fiona crouches below him, no cares left in the world as her left arm goes blue.

“Where’s Sasha?” She hisses.

Finch laughs again, dissolving into a fit of coughs. Fiona could care less as she barely looks over to the bright blue wispy power nearly summoning in her palm. Her heart skips a beat as the man brings his hand closer, holding up none other than Sasha’s goggles.

“She put up a fight to-to the very end…” He croaks, grinning. “Her an-and that lit-little nerd. You should b-be so _proud_ of her. –”

Fiona doesn’t let him finish, her hand around his throat. His body convulses, choking before the bones beneath her hand snap. She lets go, her left arm convulsing as she continues forward. 

The idea of letting someone as powerful, as influential, as Vallory knows her secret leaves Fiona to rely on her derringer. She aims it straight at the back of the woman’s head, shouting her name.

Vallory spins around, growling as she puts down her rocket launcher. “Fiona! Now is not the time-”

“I’m protecting Gortys!” She shouts back, her throat tightening. She wasn’t going to lose any more friends. 

“Summoning the Vault brought this monster with it!” Vallory replies, frustration and anger bleeding into her words as the ash and dust around them grow stronger. 

As if on cue, the monster behind growls, the ground beneath Fiona trembling with the vibrations. She can’t even make it out correctly, her eyes barely catching the glowing light. 

Fiona wasn’t going to lose any more friends.

“We have to destroy Gortys!” Vallory yells, picking up the rocket launcher despite the gun aimed at her.

 _“–Have to shoot me-”_ The robot cries over her Echo. 

Fiona refuses to give up.

“No- You can’t hurt her!” She cries, shaking her head before raising a hand to her ear. “Gortys- How can I help?!” 

Gortys doesn’t have a chance to respond before the Vault monster has spun back around, Fiona’s eyes wide as it’s wide hand is just above Vallory.

“NO!” 

Fiona stumbles back, her derringer sliding back into her sleeve as she falls back. August is screaming through the noise, voice broken and laced with pain. 

_“–Iona, I can’t-”_ Gortys’ words are broken and warbled, dropping in and out of her Echo. _“–Have to shoot at th-the yellow–”_

“Gortys!” Fiona cries, climbing back to a stand. “How- How do I help!?” 

It takes a moment for the robot’s voice to return, even more anguished. 

_“–Rocket Launcher–”_

Fiona struggles but she forces her legs forward. She jumps between the broken slabs of land, her legs barely strong enough to catch her. Her eyes are locked at the ensuing battle ahead. Gortys is crying out more pleads for help, each another pick at Fiona’s once frozen heart. 

_“–Have to shoot me–”_

“No! Y-You’ll die!” Fiona shouts. She raises her left arm, struggling to see in the dust and ash. She just barely manages to catch a sight of the Vault Monster, her arm tensing and glowing white. A sharp cry of pain leaves Fiona, barely even able to stop the beast's arm for more than a minute before she’s nearly falling backwards. She raises her arm again, ignoring the bright glowing extending from her back. 

_“-here’s no other way–”_ Gortys laments, her voice weaker. _“–Lease, Fiona! The rock–”_

Fiona’s throat tightens, dropping her left arm before grabbing a hold of the rocket launcher. It’s too heavy and her knees nearly give out, but Fiona just barely manages to aim it.

“I-I’m sorry, Go-Gortys,” She breathes, unsure if her friend can even hear her. She aims the weapon, nowhere near stable enough to get a clear shot. 

Fiona doesn’t struggle for long as the weapon shifts, suddenly much lighter. She gasps, looking over to find none other than Sasha. 

“C’mon, we’ve got this.”

The world seems to crawl to a still as Fiona takes in a stabilizing breath. She’s aimed straight at Gortys, her eyes shutting as she whispers another near-silent apology. She tries not to think about the people she lost along the way as she opens her eyes again. She tries not to think about how much it hurts. About Athena. About Vaughn. About Scooter. 

About Rhys. 

Fiona pulls the trigger.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading! I do hope you've enjoyed it!! please don't hesitate to leave a comment/kudos/follow and find me on tumblr @ewbie 
> 
> Playlist here: tinyurl.com/hyya4r7o

Hollow Point is exactly as it was when Fiona left. The town is dreary, oblivious to the hell and carnage that transpired. The newspapers in the streets all report the crash of Helios, about the thousands of bodies buried below the rubble. 

There's no mention of a Vault. 

Fiona stands in her kitchen in the middle of the night nearly a week later. August was back at the bar, sporting a new scar as he hid his limp from his patrons, many oblivious to his recent loss and journey.

Sasha stays in the house. 

The clock above Fiona ticks, the night growing longer and longer as she stares at nothing in particular. 

_ Thousands Dead Beneath the Wreckage, Crimson Raiders to Intervene with Clean Up Attempts. _

Fiona swallows slowly. She tries not to think about the desperate apology from one of the potential dead. She tries not to think about Finch’s last words regarding the one other person still alive who knew about her abilities. 

The clock ticks. Fiona doesn’t move. 

She hates the curling hatred in her chest. She hates just how volatile she feels, how on edge she is. Her usual composure is nowhere to be found, her quick thinking and rationality burned away with the remnants of Helios. 

_ “You’re- You’re a Siren!” _

_ “Shush! Don’t let the whole station know!” _

_ “That’s- That’s amazing, Fiona, wow-” _

The pricking of her nails digging into the rough skin of her palm does little to waver just how tight her fist is. 

Fiona thinks about Rhys, no matter how much she doesn’t want to. He sits on her shoulder like a devil, his words, his mannerisms, everything clicking together in equal parts horror and rage. It hits her just how long Rhys hid the Handsome Jack from her- how long he played the role of her friend, her companion. 

Sasha  _ really _ liked him. She liked his foolishness, his idiotic tendencies, and deep down inside, despite how much Fiona denied it, his ability to be  _ good. _ Fiona can’t remember a time when Sasha was happy with someone- with  _ anyone _ other than her. 

The thought alone is enough to boil her blood. 

She could reconcile with the fact Rhys lied to her. She was brash, rougher around the edges and harder to like. Sasha, on the other hand, wasn’t. As hard as she tried to be, she just wasn’t. Her heart wasn’t on her sleeve, maybe further up, resting on her shoulder, waiting for someone to acknowledge its existence- to dare to look deeper. 

Sasha had gone against the one rule Felix swore upon.

_ Don’t get attached. _

Fiona curses the older man’s name, saving her hatred for him for another night. She looks down at the healing cut on her palm, her eyes training the sight of it for a long moment. Her body was covered in bruises and cuts, Sasha equally battered. 

Fiona looks to her blue markings against her tanned skin, swirling up and down her left arm. She once again thinks about the hell her life was, her jaw locking and eyes daring to burn.

_ “Your secret is safe with me, I promise.”  _

The clock continues to tick. 

* * *

“We should go looking for them.” 

Fiona dares to look up from her derringer, her face blank. Sasha sits across from her at the table, her hands messing with an old radio but Fiona can tell her focus isn’t there.

“What?” She questions, eyes narrowing. 

Sasha’s eyes search her for a beat. “We should try to find them.” 

“Who?” 

“You know who, Fiona,” Sasha replies, not quite angry. “We don’t… We don’t have to be friends or anything, but just to know-”

“Know what?” Fiona interrupts, pulling her derringer back into her sleeve. “If he survived? I don’t care, Sasha.” Sasha looks away but Fiona doesn’t give up. “I know you want to think that he cared or liked us or even just  _ you,  _ but he didn’t.” 

Fiona knows she’s being harsh and unnecessarily cruel but she can only hope that her younger sister can one day understand the way she was trying to protect her. 

“I know he lied–” 

“Sasha! He betrayed us both!” Fiona interrupts again, growing much more frustrated. “Friends don’t do that, Sash! They don’t hide a genocidal maniac in their head for so long without even  _ mentioning  _ it.” 

“He’s just like Jack,” She spits out for good measure. “There’s no excuse.” 

Sasha is quiet, throat bobbing as she swallows. She looks up slowly, meeting her sister’s fiery gaze.

“What about Vaughn?” 

The name is enough to just barely chip away at the anger in Fiona’s chest, her throat tightening. 

“I-I didn’t see what happened to him… but Finch- He said…” Sasha’s quiet words come to a slow stop, her eyes locking on the wooden table.

Fiona looks away, her hand beneath the table curling into a fist. 

“Then we already know what happened to him.” 

The words are just as painful and heavy on Fiona’s shoulders as they are on Sasha’s, if not more so. The man, despite the little time they spent together, was nothing but kind in his own dorky way. He cared deeply for Rhys, and even Fiona and Sasha to an extent. Fiona still thinks about his kind words to her in a time of fear. 

She squashes the tiny part of her that hopes that he is out there, waiting for them. Fiona can’t afford to think about the what-ifs.

“I’m going to Sanctuary,” She speaks, climbing to a stand. “You should come with. We can stop by August on the way out.” 

Sasha’s nails scrape across the table as she curls her hands into fists. Fiona’s prepared for a fight but is met with nothing but a slow nod. 

“We’ll leave in an hour,” Fiona murmurs, flexing her left arm. 

* * *

The travel to Sanctuary is borderline nauseating, the weird system for travel is one that unsettles Fiona to her core. She can’t complain, or rather doesn’t have time to, as she searches the city with a slack jaw.

The city was just like any other city on Pandora, only several thousand feet in the air. Security roamed around, stapled with a Crimson Raider sign on the back of their uniforms. People walk about, a few drunkenly staggering but most keeping to themselves. 

Fiona’s attention is caught by a sign hanging above the street and against a building. She frowns, the man almost recognizable. 

_ Fight For Sanctuary. _

“Wow,” Sasha breathes, looking around. “This… This is a city.” 

Fiona nods, walking forward. She has a faint idea of where she needs to go, where the headquarters is. Sasha is by her side, looking around with a childlike wonder. It’s the first time in three weeks Fiona has seen her smile and it almost earns a smile out of her. Almost. 

“It shouldn’t be more than a few minutes of walking,” Fiona murmurs, looking around eagerly. “It’s tucked in the back somewhere.”

“I’m surprised they don’t have a castle,” Sasha mumbles, hands by her side. “I feel like if I was that important I’d want to be pampered.”

Fiona snorts. “Yeah, me too.” 

Silence falls over the two, the city bustling about around them as they continue their walk. Sasha’s ever-curious eyes scan each person, each building, eyes wide. Fiona makes sure to glare at anyone who looks over. 

The stairs to the Crimson Raider headquarters are nearly littered with recruitment signs, the door open. Fiona steps up, nearly knocking on the doorway, only to meet a red-haired woman, her blue tattoos in plain sight. 

“Oh,” She starts, pulling away from the conversation she was having with another brown-haired woman. “Are you our new recruits?”

“Uh, not quite,” Fiona starts, looking almost unsure. “Are you…?” 

“Lilith,” She answers, one hand on her hip as she gives them a small smile. “I’m sure you’ve seen my wanted posters. Leader of the Crimson Raiders now.”

“Right,” Fiona speaks, nodding her head. “I- Well, let me just show you.” 

The woman’s brow perks, confusion evident on her face. Fiona hesitates, looking her over for another second before slowly raising her left hand. Her sleeve falls to her elbow, her arm growing blue as the energy in her palm pulsates into view. 

The short-haired woman beside her gasps, clasping her hands together. 

“I want to know more,” Fiona breathes out, feeling Sasha stand closer behind her. “About everything.” 

Lilith grins. 

* * *

Fiona practices her new skills, her new homegrown abilities. She’s not quite brave enough to leave herself as exposed as Lilith was, but she keeps her jacket unbuttoned at the top, the blue peaking out. She had another mission with Lilith, another practice run of her abilities. Tannis was by their side the entire time, scribbling down her details. 

Vault Hunters came in and left the headquarters often, a few stopping to actually speak to her. Maya, the other Siren, was ecstatic to meet her, going as far as to call her a sister upon their first conversation. She hadn’t stuck around long, but it was a delight to see her all the same. Mordecai and Brick had been… awkward to say the least. But it was rather difficult to stay mad at the duo. 

The Vault Hunter fully clad in black with a mysterious mask noticed her. She noticed them. Few words were exchanged. 

Fiona searches Sanctuary for Sasha, knowing her sister to not have gone  _ too _ far. She walks about, brows furrowing as she raises her hand to her ear, fully prepared to call her, only to stumble to a stop. 

At the very edges of Sanctuary stood a large shut down building. The wide-set garage doors nearly bolted to the ground. Outside stood a memorial of sorts, various dead flowers, unlit candles, and signatures etched into the concrete, a statue being built. Fiona comes to a stop just in front, eyes wide and heart nearly giving out as she stares.

_ From fixing cars to saving Pandora, he never gave up. We’ll miss you, Scoot. _

_ -Mama ❤ _

Fiona stares, heart caught in her throat. She doesn’t dare step much closer, the logo and catchphrase etched across the floor. Her eyes search quickly as she feels the world around her grow too warm. It’s hard to breathe, hard to get the buzzing out of her ears. 

_ “–Hellloo? Fiona?” _

The woman jumps, spinning around and away from the memorial as she raises a hand to her ear. “Hey, Sash!” She greets, her voice barely holding it together. “Where are you at? You ready to go?”

_ “Yeah, I’ll meet you at the town square.” _

Fiona drops her hand from her ear, hands clenched as she walks forward. She barely notices the closed down bar, her eyes locked on the concrete ground as she forces the blurriness of her eyes to leave. 

* * *

Hollow Point is having a rather freezing day, one that Fiona decides to spend at home. She looks over her notes at the breakfast table, sipping a cup of tea with Sasha across from her. The woman is quiet, much quieter than usual.

Fiona chalks it up to a nightmare. 

The sink leaks slow droplets of water, echoing off the metal in the quiet space. Fiona doesn’t mind as she focuses on Tannis' teachings.

“He gave me a flower.” 

Fiona blinks, looking up from her notebook. “What?”

Sasha struggles for a minute before swallowing slowly, not looking up from the trinket in her hands. 

“Rhys.” 

The name sends a bitter taste to her mouth, blinking at her sister’s words. “I’m sorry- A  _ flower?” _

“At the Atlas Biodome,” Sasha murmurs, her words heavy. “He gave me a flower.” She pauses, waiting for Fiona to reply, only for the silence to nearly suffocate her. “He picked one out and put it on my ear.” 

Fiona is stunned silent for the first time in a long time, staring at Sasha with big eyes. Sasha refuses to meet her gaze. 

“Why?” Fiona finally replies.

“I don’t know,” Sasha whispers after a beat, her throat bobbing. Her eyes are locked on the old device on the table, the faint shaking of her hands invisible to anyone but Fiona. 

Fiona struggles to find something to stay, unsure how to navigate Sasha’s potential bait. She’s not sure if she wants an angry response, a sad one, or even one at all. 

Sasha makes the decision for her.

“I hate him.” 

A blink is all Fiona replies with, looking down at her notes. 

Sasha gets up then, throwing her work in progress in the garbage before disappearing into her room. 

* * *

Fiona is hanging out of an Outrunner, her hands holding the withered map in her hands. She’s searching the barren wasteland, eyes peeled for the legendary symbol. Her mind is already made up, the adrenaline in her blood nearing excitement. 

Her boots kick up dirt as she walks around the vehicle, lifting one hand to her ear. “Lilith?” She calls, waiting for only a beat.

_ “Any luck?” _

“None,” Fiona replies with a huff. “I’m thinking of heading a few more miles south, maybe I’ll have better luck there.” 

_ “Try it and get back to me,” _ Lilith echoes back, seemingly just as frustrated.  _ “These maps are nearly as old as Pandora.” _

“I know,” Fiona laments, “I’ll call you in a bit.” She drops her hand from her ear, searching the wasteland with another shake of her head. She climbs up and into the Outrunner, sparing a quick glance to the photograph in the dashboard before turning the vehicle on. It hums to life and Fiona drives, the wasteland around blurring. 

It’s only a few minutes drive before Fiona climbs out, the ground much less stable as she looks around, eyes searching the canyon. She looks for the etching in the rockwall, frowning at the emptiness. 

The ground is suddenly vibrating below Fiona’s shoes, her eyes shooting open as she stumbles back to her Outrunner. She watches as the ground breaks apart, brows shoot up as she blinks.

A Sand Worm reaches out of the ground with a near-shriek, twisting and turning before opening its mouth in Fiona’s direction. She’s more than ready to counter it, nearly smirking as she raises her left hand, stopping it in its place. The being attempts to twist and turn, hissing loudly.

“Oh shut up.” 

Fiona rolls her eyes before pulling out her SMG, a gift from Brick, and drilling the beast with multiple bullets. It falls to the ground when Fiona allows it to, staring at it’s dead body with a scrunch of her nose before raising her hand to her ear.

“Yeah, so this is a sand worm pit.” 

A crackling emerged on the other end of a line, a sigh coming through first.

_ “I’ll let Tannis know, come on back.” _

Fiona sighs but hangs up after a beat anyway. She thinks she can get used to this whole Vault Hunting business.

* * *

“I thought you hated that all this happened!” Sasha all but shouts, her figure shaking in the warm kitchen. 

“Sasha, this is different,” Fiona replies, hand on her hip as she shakes her head. “I’m doing this because it not only brings money, but it’s  _ good. _ It’s not conning-” 

“How is Vault hunting  _ good?” _ Sasha interrupts, hands out. “How is  _ any _ of what you’re doing good? You’re just going to Sanctuary every day, then suddenly you’re in the desert or a wasteland or some God forsaken bandit camp!” 

“So what, Sash! It’s good money, I’m doing missions and stuff for  _ good _ people, you said you liked them!” Fiona points out, already exhausted of the conversation. “There’s nothing wrong with what I’m doing. You’re more than welcome to tag along-” 

“Why would I want to?! After everything that happened!”

“This is different, Sasha,” Fiona replies, dropping her hand from her hip to cross her arms. “You know it is.” 

“How?” Sasha sneers, not giving up. “How is it different?”

“Well, for starters, I’m not teaming up with two assholes,” Fiona snaps, brows furrowing. “These people have  _ experience _ with Vaults. They know how to handle everything.” 

Sasha doesn’t give in. “They weren’t the reason Gortys died.” 

The rush of anger in Fiona’s chest is too strong for her to ignore, her nails digging into her arms. “Oh so now it’s my fault!?” She snaps, heart racing. “I killed her!”

“No, that’s not what I’m saying-” 

“It is what you’re saying, Sasha!” Fiona cuts in, visibly angry. “You literally just said that it’s my fault.”

Sasha shakes her head, her hands at her sides pulled into tight fists. “I said it wasn’t  _ their _ fault- It’s the stupid Vault’s fault,” She speaks, her voice shaking. “That monster killed Gortys, it almost killed us too! It’s not- Vault hunting is too dangerous, Fi!” 

“Conning was just as dangerous,” Fiona bites back, stepping forward. “Being on  _ Pandora _ is dangerous.”

A beat passes, Sasha’s eyes locked on Fiona’s.

“What happened to leaving, Fi?” 

Fiona sets her jaw, a rush of air leaving her nose as she looks away. “We can’t leave now, Sasha, we don’t have the money,” She replies, most of the anger leaving her. “Maybe in a few years…” 

“Is it actually about the money?” Sasha breathes, shoulders falling. “Or is this about Vaults now?” 

The anger returns as quickly as it left. 

“Sasha, you don’t have to work at the stupid bar if you don’t want to!” Fiona cries, hands out at her side. “You can come with me! You can help me- The Vault–”

“I don’t want anything to do with Vaults, Fiona!” Sasha shouts, stepping forward with big eyes. “I-I sit at that stupid bar and work and you’re out here in the desert or fighting bullymongs and I– I  _ worry _ , F-Fiona!”

Fiona finally notices the wetness clinging to her younger sister’s lashes.

“We lost  _ s-so much _ for that  _ stupid  _ Vault,” Sasha continues, her words breaking. “We l-lost Felix and–and I know he sucked and he was terrible, but fuck Fi! He was  _ family.” _ She struggles to stop the quivering of her lip, her fists growing tighter.

“And-And I know I was stupid to b-believe that Rh- that  _ he _ was go-good, that we might h-have had  _ something,” _ She trembles out, no longer able to meet her sister’s gaze. “But th-they, Vaughn a-and Loader Bot and Gortys, we were all a team. A-And I really  _ cared _ about them.”

Sasha shakes her head slowly, her shoulders dropping. “We w-were a fa– a  _ team _ . And we lost everyone b-because of that Vault.” 

Fiona can’t help herself as she steps closer, unable to stand the hurt in her sister’s eyes for another moment as she pulls her to her chest, hugging her with as much strength as she had. She swallows slowly, planting her chin in her sister’s hair.

“I can-can’t lose anyone else,” Sasha breathes out, her words muffled into her sister’s jacket. “I can’t- I just ca-can’t.”

Fiona squeezes Sasha tighter, shutting her eyes as a long sigh leaves her. She knew her sister’s ‘attitude’ was one that stemmed from hurt, one that was curated from fear. It had been building for weeks, long enough that Fiona expected  _ something _ to happen soon.

She should’ve seen this coming.

“You won’t lose me,” Fiona manages after a beat, opening her eyes. “I promise, Sasha. Nothing will ever take me away from you.” 

“You do-don’t know that,” Sasha whimpers, “We were supposed to l-leave. To get out of here.” 

Fiona is quiet, holding the younger woman as her own stomach flips. She’s not sure how to help,  _ if _ she can help. 

“I know.” 

There’s not much else Fiona can say. 

* * *

The Dust was one of the most displeasing places Fiona wanted to be. She hates the, well, the dust. It’s too hot and she can never forgo her matching suit regardless of the temperature, so she’s forced to endure and complain. Sometimes Maya is with her, giving little comments and snippets of her life and Fiona feels like her complaints are nowhere near as important anymore. They were similar in a lot more ways than Fiona expected and she finds it… really nice to be with someone who understood. 

For now, Fiona was alone 

Her boots trudge up more dust and sand as she walks. She tries not to think about Sasha waiting at home for her. 

The device in her hand hums as she walks, her Echo thankfully quiet. The dust kicks up again and Fiona lowers her hat over her head. She looks up after a beat, scanning the surroundings with narrowed eyes.

Lilith had been sure that the map in Sanctuary pointed to a Vault  _ here. _ On Pandora. And Fiona was determined to find it.

The Vault would fix everything. It’d fix the money issues, the inaccessibility to a better life.

It would fix the betrayal that nestled itself in Fiona’s chest six months ago. 

A nearby psycho Outrunner sounds out, pulling Fiona out of her mind. She perks a brow, waiting for it to pass over the canyon. It keeps going, taking its screaming occupants with it. 

Fiona nearly misses the notification of a new message on her Echo. She doesn’t stop walking as she clicks her ear. The static and unrecognizable voice does little to stop the blood in her face from falling. 

_ “It’s time we talked, Fiona.”  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some notes! 
> 
> I chose kinetic manipulation for Fiona's powers because it's a favorite power that I would personally love to have, as well as one of my all time favorite super heroes in the comic world! I also think Fiona would enjoy being in control of things that were already moving, countering her ability isn't exactly impossible! 
> 
> I think Fiona's time after Helios falls to just be, so /interesting/. She's not alone like Rhys or Vaughn is and now, she's finally presented with an opportunity to find out who she is. She's eager for more knowledge to get her mind away from the hurt inside her while Sasha struggles to let the grudge go because, frankly, she's hurting /horribly/. I loved getting into their dynamic after Felix passes, so this was just an all around fun project. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed reading this and I can't wait to show you guys what more I have waiting!

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on Tumblr: Ewbie.tumblr .com!


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